On April 22, 2026, NMA joined an amicus brief, led by RCFP, in Donnelly v. Des Moines Register and Tribune Co., Inc. in the Eight Circuit supporting Appellee and urging the court to affirm the judgment of the district court. This case involves a suit brought by an Iowa resident against The Des Moines Register alleging that a poll published days before the presidential election, which didn’t ultimately match the results of the election, constituted “fraud.”
The brief emphasizes the two independent grounds for First Amendment protection of the speech at issue, namely that the Iowa Poll is a form of predictive analysis and commentary that is a constitutionally protected opinion and cannot be categorized as “false” speech and that even if the Poll could be characterized as “false,” it is still entitled to First Amendment protection because falsity alone is insufficient to render speech outside First Amendment protection. The brief highlights the chilling effect on news reporting that would result from adopting Appellant’s theory and holding Appellees liable for standard, everyday political reporting if a fraud or misrepresentation claim could be spun out of a public opinion poll that ultimately diverged from future events.
